Saturday, October 22, 2011

Kurofune Porter

Today I'm drinking Kurofune Porter brewed by Baird Brewing in Numazu, Japan. I had their Rising Sun Pale Ale just a few days ago, so it's time to hit the other end of the spectrum. The little story on the side lets you know that Kurofune means Black Ships and was a word used by the Japanese people to describe American gunboats that helped open trading between the countries. The front of the label depicts one of those boats in an impressionistic style (I never took an art style class. Feel free to correct me.)

Giant head! Chocolaty cocoa, milky and sweet aroma, with a light roast. Very inviting. I tasted quite a bit of smokey flavors right in the beginning. By the end of the glass, I didn't taste that aspect really very much at all. But the roasted, perhaps to the point of being burnt, malts and chocolate flavors are persistent throughout. A light coffee adds some bitterness, but not in a harsh way at all. Creamy carbonation, nice mouthfeel. The 6% alcohol was slightly noticeable at the end but not really much of a factor. Flavorful, enjoyable, expensive--even for a great porter.